Day 67

The W section wrapped up Unit 5.1 today and got ready for their test tomorrow. They seemed to pick up combining atoms pretty well, understanding why it is done (so that the oxidation numbers negate each other) as well as learning the simple criss-crossing of oxidation numbers.

The S section had a fantastic performance in the hydrogen bark lab. Things went very smoothly and safely, and I was proud to see the clean up especially at the end. Ask your son or daughter about this lab--I told them they were real scientists now, and they certainly looked and acted it.

The O and L sections did not perform well on their unit 5.1 test. The average in both classes was an F. I warned everyone at the beginning of the unit that it was a very hard test, and though a couple of people studied, for the most part no one did anything except come to class. That is simply not enough at this stage of the study of science. These concepts are so new and so different, they just don't fit into student's mindsets without a lot of work. I am most disappointed because the online test was taken by only a handful, and this test was very similar to the one we took in class. The only glimmer of sunshine here is that it was only a 25 point test, and our other grades will more than make up for a poor score here.

Next up for us is unit 5.2 on chemical reactions. I think this one is even harder than 5.1; I hope I can convince the students of that. Have a good weekend!

Sweet justice.

Day 66

This was a short day, as we had a two hour delay before it all began. The O section began with my L lesson for yesterday, going over HW 5-6 (10 questions out of the book) concerning the three different bond types (ionic, covalent, and metallic), and then learning about how compounds form from two different elements. This involved a discussion of oxidation numbers, a number given as an exponent, that indicates whether an atom will lose or gain electrons in a chemical reaction. When atoms bond, the oxidation numbers must total zero. This is accomplished by changing the ratio of the atoms. So, for instance, if H (+1) bonds with O (-2), it will take two H atoms (2 x +1 = +2) to negate the O atoms -2. So we get the compound H2O. They worked on a worksheet with this for a while, and then we were sadly done.

The W section had the most fun today, making hydrogen gas as the O section had yesterday. They did a great job, especially with cleanup. I rewarded students who cleaned well with an OWLSbuck, and everyone got one. It is a pleasure to teach students who work so hard and have such respect for the school's property, and my sanity :)

The S section met at the end of the day for a 25 minute period (they are normally 45), and we raced through the HW questions and learned about oxidation numbers. They picked this up superfast, even though I did not have access to my smartboard, teaching on the 7th grade side of the building today. They did sing a nice spanish song to the theme of La Bamba at the beginning of the period. I suspect that it was a challenge of some sort. I noticed that the other teachers in the area closed their doors. This often happens when I teach. Is this a sign of something?

The quiz on Unit 5.1 (25 questions) is tomorrow for the L and O section and Monday for the S and W section. I hope they study!

Sweet justice.

Day 65

This was not a good day for me--I made it through fifth period, and by the time lunch was over I was on my way home. Perhaps it was a chemical reaction gone bad, but I was out for the count. I showed a video on explosions to the classes I missed in the afternoon; I hope you learned a bit about chemical reactions in my absence.

I feel better now, later in the day. The best period of the day was the O1 section and the hydrogen bark lab. In this packed lab, the students used a chemical reaction between HCl and magnesium and calcium to produce hydrogen gas, which they stored in test tubes and then set on fire at the end. It had everything students want: fire, explosions, strong acid and bubbles (of H gas). We will be discussing the reactions in the following week, learning more about what happened as we learn to read chemical equations.

In the L section, I had a massive headache, but we did make progress, going over the review homework 5-6 and learning how about oxidation numbers and how to combine atoms to make compounds. By the end of the period, I think most students had a good understanding of how compounds arrive at the ratios they have. We will go over it again tomorrow and make sure, as well as take the Unit 5.1 quiz.

Sweet justice for ibuprofen.

Day 64

This was egg day--a tradition on the team that stretches back all of 2 years now. Here is what we did: we divided the team up into 31 smaller teams of students, picked randomly, and gave them a challenge: create a structure out of supplies sold at our store that would allow an egg to fall from a height without breaking. We dropped twice--once in the morning, once in the afternoon. Our goal was multi fold: to let the students work in cooperative groups with people they were not necessarily friends with, to learn from mistakes, to think creatively, to manage money (they were given $200 egg-bucks to start the day), to use the process of scientific inquiry, and of course, to have fun. It was a break from our normal day to day routine, which everyone benefits from.

The first drop today was from 12 feet; nine groups survived. The second drop was from 30 feet; I don't have the data on how many survived, but I believe the number was higher. This is success, to me, that we learned from our mistakes, from the work of others, and made improvements. This is how the United States made it to the moon (to the stars)--with effort.

We took 385 pictures of the day, an amazing amount. This would have been over 10 rolls before the age of digital pictures. We showed a slide show during study hall at the end of the day, which was a great way to end. And to that I say: sweet justice.

Day 63

Today the L section finally got to learn about radioactivity. It was a good lesson, and they progressed through it well and made important insights. One thing I want my students to know is that all elements can be radioactive if the ratio of the protons to neutrons is not close to one. Using an online tool, we figured that out together today.

In the OWS sections, we learned about covalent and metallic bonds, Essential Questions 5-4 and 5-5. We reinforced the concepts with the molecular model kits. The toughest element to create today was O2, a double bonded covalent molecular compound. Everyone eventually got it, and we drew the structural formula and the electron dot formula as well.

The quiz for this unit is soon. The L and S sections take it Thursday, and the O and W sections take it Friday. There is a practice quiz on Moodle right now. I don't know why more students don't take this--it uses questions I will use on the actual quiz and is fantastic practice to get ready for a tough quiz.

Tomorrow is eggsperiment day, a day when we split into teams of three and drop eggs from two different heights. I will report on it tomorrow.

Sweet justice!